It has been two decades after Guitar Hero first launched in North America, offering everyday gamers the opportunity to become a rock star. Not literally, though you'd be hard-pressed telling that someone who's mastered the epic lengthy instrumental break before an enthusiastic crowd of friends.
Created by Harmonix, the game gave players a plastic guitar peripheral to match coloured notes moving along the screen in time with a song. Each riff corresponded to particular chords, producing the feel of a genuine live show.
The studio previously tried its hand in the music genre before partnering with RedOctane, later acquired by Activision during the mid-2000s. Together, they laid the foundations for a surprising billion-dollar franchise that had a remarkable influence for many of the artists included, showcasing decades-old groups to a new generation of younger players.
Michael Dornbrook, ex-chief operating officer from the developer, remembers the early budgetary hurdles of licensing the songs – even though initial releases primarily featured cover versions.
“We reproduced every song because the dollar figure was so high,” he explains. “Despite having the necessary permissions by themselves, it was extremely difficult. We failed to secure bands like legendary groups – the publisher was operating on a shoestring budget, and we were fairly certain it would fail. But once Guitar Hero became a hit, album purchases airtime increased, everyone wanted to be in.”
He continues: “Among the amazing things was how many mothers and fathers reached out and thanked us for exposing their kids to the songs they adored. It became an intergenerational thing.”
Classic Rock Finds a New Audience
Northern Irish blues-rock band the Answer included their track in the 2008 release Guitar Hero World Tour. Guitarist Paul Mahon recalls the way the game brought classic rock back into vogue: “The game provided a bigger, younger audience. Generally such music was seen as music that was past it, but then once it got included in the game and teenagers discovered it, suddenly it became trendy. This validated the genre, eliminating the ‘dad rock’ tag. It provided all our music a new life.”
In 2008, the band's first record was still not available in the US, so the game was a key medium of discovery for the group during their US tour supporting AC/DC. “Their crew were playing Never Too Late on the tour bus, and some of them recognized us from Guitar Hero,” Mahon says.
Major Band Spin-offs and Lasting Impact
Rock’s biggest acts soon capitalised on the game's success, with Aerosmith, Metallica and others featuring in dedicated game editions centered around each band’s catalogue and related stories, imagery and rock’n’roll mythology. For example, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, it was said to have made the band greater revenue compared to their studio albums. It moved well over half a million copies in its first week, while demand for Aerosmith’s music rose significantly during an era when the music business faced decline.
Guitar Hero continues to inspire quick-handed fanaticism within the community. Earlier this year, a streamer achieved an impressive attempt of DragonForce’s the challenging track – an infamously tough anthem made popular by the game – using a fan-made version, a no-cost alternative with almost identical gameplay and extensive personalization features. This track is challenging even in expert mode, let alone played at increased tempo and without missing every one of the thousands of cues. The streamer stated requiring months of practice of practice.
“The game is a fun, imaginary experience. If you play other games, that doesn’t mean you should pick up a real gun and enlist,” says DragonForce guitarist Herman Li.
The band previously completed a successful tour when Through the Fire and Flames was featured on Guitar Hero III, yet he explains it made them a household name. “I recall the record label calling to tell me that our selling albums like crazy,” he shares. “It exploded on the subsequent tour, and we were playing right ahead of the headliners at the event.”
In fact, the band's visibility from Guitar Hero was so immense that it threatened to overshadow everything else the band has done. Last year, the song featured in promotional material for a major film. “In the past I thought otherwise, but I’ve made peace with it,” he admits. “Should you just listen to a single track, that's fine – everyone’s got a unique path in music and I’m glad we’ve been part of people’s lives”.
The Lasting Legacy from the Iconic Controller
Top-tier promotion, whether it’s for cars, apparel or video games, goes further mere transactions – it inspires a longing. Was the game able to tap into that? “That’s exactly what we were trying to create,” Dornbrook says. “The excitement of being a music icon in the spotlight. Since the beginning, the creators felt that there’s an instinctive urge to create songs, and they wanted to leverage innovation to enable everyone to participate”.
Most of Guitar Hero games were released over a mere five-year period between 2005 and 2010, including derivative titles such as the DJ version, including a turntable controller, and Band Hero. Subsequently, the publisher’s interest on peripherals died down, except for a brief comeback in 2015.
Games like Clone Hero and Fortnite Festival have kept the scene alive, with expectations of something from the original publisher on the way. A new studio has entered production on their first rhythm-based title. Original co-founders are participating in advisory roles. Are gamers ready to embrace a new entry following the classic?
“We thought such titles could be similar to sports games where you can releases,” Dornbrook says. “With abundant fresh tracks that it could be perennially popular, so I’ve always been optimistic. There’s no reason why it can’t persist with new generations.”
